


the forest for the trees

by Annerb



Series: Bonus Materials for The Changeling and Armistice Series [5]
Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: F/M, Missing Scene, outsider pov
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-17
Updated: 2020-01-17
Packaged: 2021-02-25 09:23:06
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,015
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22293691
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Annerb/pseuds/Annerb
Summary: Missing scene forchapter 8ofin my head we do everything right. What Hermione sees but fails to understand.
Relationships: Harry Potter/Ginny Weasley
Series: Bonus Materials for The Changeling and Armistice Series [5]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1586182
Comments: 6
Kudos: 327





	the forest for the trees

_Ginny-_

_Hope your practices are going well. We’re all looking forward to having you back in England for the holidays._

_Had a bit of a scare today. The curse apparently worked its way past one of the binding spells again. It was horrible, Harry just going ashen mid-sentence, and then starting to scream. I thought I had seen dark magic, but this curse, it’s the most horrible thing I have ever seen._

_Don’t worry, the medistaff were quick to intercede, putting the spells back in place, but we’re all a bit shaken up. Even if they say the curse is far weaker now and it definitely shouldn’t happen again, it was still in—_

Hermione looks up from her letter at the sound of Harry groaning. His eyes are still closed, but his face is creased in pain.

“Harry,” she says, reaching out to touch his hand. 

“Christ,” he rasps, voice weak and shaky. “What happened?”

“The curse,” she says, leaning closer. “It apparently escaped the binding spells, which they still don’t know how, and _really_ , if they were competent _at all_ they would have been watching for something like this–” She knows she’s rambling, just can’t manage to stop, her heart thudding away as she remembers the sound of Harry screaming, the scrambling panic of the healers. 

“’m fine,” Harry slurs, patting her hand absently.

“Yes, you are,” she says firmly. 

“Gonna maybe pass out again though.” 

She lets out a shaky laugh. “Yes. Go on and do that.”

But sleep must prove elusive, because he shifts slightly in bed, no doubt in pain but refusing to admit it. She isn’t sure if he’s allowed more pain potion at the moment. Flicking her wand, she triggers the request for a mediwitch’s attention.

She knows Harry must be suffering when he doesn’t protest.

“What’re you doing?” he asks as they wait, clearly looking for a distraction. 

“Writing a letter.” 

Harry cracks an eye open. “To who?” 

“Ginny,” she says lightly, as if she isn’t closely watching his reaction. 

“Oh,” he says, almost too perfectly nonchalant. 

Hermione’s eyes narrow. It’s on the tip of her tongue to push, to demand to know exactly what is going on–what that brief kiss Ginny may or may not have pressed to his forehead while he was asleep _meant_ –but she also remembers how furious Harry was with her for ‘sticking her nose in where it doesn’t belong’ as he’d snapped at her after his break up with Cass. Not long after which he’d left, come back to England on his own rather than be around her. And here, so close to death yet again. All of them so close to losing him _again_. 

Besides, Hermione tells herself, it doesn’t really matter anyway. Ginny isn’t here. She isn’t _going_ to be here, has chosen not to be. Living abroad and chasing her dreams is clearly more important to her. Even if Harry does secretly have feelings for her, bringing it up would only be salt in the wound. Harry has enough things to be miserable about. 

“What did you say?” Harry asks.

“Nothing.” She’s been very careful not to! 

“In the letter,” Harry says, voice impatient. 

“Oh,” she says, immediately feeling a flare of curiosity when she has just so faithfully promised not to stick her nose in it. “Just giving her an update.” 

“What did you say?” he asks again, a dark look crossing his features, and truly, there has never been a worse patient in the world than Harry James Potter. 

“Since when is my private correspondence any of your business?” she asks. 

“Hermione,” he snaps, immovably stubborn for all he looks like a half-drowned, angry kitten at the moment.

“Fine!” she says, knowing better than to fight Harry when he gets like this. He’ll probably try to get out of bed and take it from her, end up getting himself killed in some other inventive way. She reads it off to him, not sure if the frown on his face is from hearing what his relapse looked like to her, or because of the recipient. 

“Happy?” she asks when she’s finished.

“No,” Harry says. “You’ve clearly exaggerated.”

Hermione rolls her eyes. She hasn’t. If anything, she’s played down how terrible it was. Not that it would be the worst thing for Ginny to see what exactly she is missing. What kind of state Harry is in. And now she is convinced all over again that she read too much into it. 

If Ginny actually cared a whit, she would be here. 

Hermione writes another line. _Harry just woke up as I was writing this letter. Demanded that I read it aloud and then told me to stop exaggerating._

“Give it here,” he says, gesturing for the quill. 

“Harry, really,” she huffs, even as she reluctantly hands it over. 

She gives him a book to put under the paper, and he frowns down at the words before lifting his trembling hand to write. His forehead creases with the effort, his tongue sticking out between his lips. His breathing gets more and more labored as he inks in painful letter after painful letter, and just as Hermione is going to demand he stop, he lowers the quill, letting her take it from him. 

Fortunately the mediwitch arrives then, Ron quickly on his heels. 

While Ron distracts him and the mediwitch hovers, the two of them coercing him into potions he definitely needs, Hermione reads what he’s written. _  
_

_I’m fine. See? I can even hold a quill. Now please go back to flying around on your broom and kicking people’s arses for those of us who are saddled with overbearing babysitters._

Hermione doesn’t know what she hoped to read, is only disappointed and slightly angry, though she isn’t sure why exactly. Clearly Harry doesn’t want Ginny here anymore than Ginny wants to be here. 

With a sigh, she crosses out ‘overbearing babysitters’ and inks in ‘loyal, caring friends’. 

Because Hermione will be here. She will stand by Harry no matter what. And that, in the end, is all that matters.


End file.
